William h



W. H. BROWN.

COLLAPSIBLE SIGN AND LIGHTING POST. APPLICATION FILED APR. 4, I9I9.

1,307, 655 Patented Ju'ne 24, 1919.

wl-TNESS'ES TTORN EY 'UNITED sTATEs PATENT oEEroE.

WILLIAM H. BROWN, OF HASTINGS, NEBRASKA.

COLLAPSIBLE SIGN AND .'LIGH'JIIIBTG POST.

Application filed April 4, 1919.

To all 'Lo/wm t may concern Be it known that I, WILLIAM H. BROWN, a citizen of the United States, residing at Hastings, in the county'orn Adams and State of Nebraska, have invented a new and useful Collapsible Sign and Lighting Post, of

-which the following is a specification.

This invention relates to posts for supporting signs and lighting means for guiding traffic in busy thoroughfares or other places.

The object is to provide a support for signs or lights which is so constructed as to withstand the attacks of heavy winds and the influences of the elements and maintain the signs or light in proper position'vto be easily seen by drivers of vehicles and to be guided-in proper course thereby, and which, in the event of being accidentally collided with 'by such vehicle, is so constructed as to break or collapse, thus avoiding any material damage to said vehicle or the driver' or occupants thereof, and at the same time, capable of being readily and cheaply restored to its original condition in the event' of such collision.

A. further object is to make provision, in such a sign or light support, for easily making the necessary electrical connections for maintaining said light and to render the support easily distinguishable during the day time when the light is extinguished.

full and complete understanding of the invention may be obtained from a' consideration of the following detailed description,

taken in connection 4with the accompanying drawing, it being understood that While the latter shows a practical form of the invention, the latter is not confined to strict conformity therewith, but may be changed or altered so long as such changes or alterations mark no material departure from the salienty features of the invention as specifically pointed out in the appended claims.

ln the drawing, in which similar reference characters designate corresponding parts throughout the several iguresr- Figure 'l is a side elevation of a collapsi- 'lie sign and lighting post vconstructed in lance with the present invention.

i is a vertical transverse sectional viewer the same. the upper portion ot' the post being in elevation.

in many communities where vehicular traflic is most congested, as at the intersection of streets or roads, the common practice Specification of Letters Patent.

Serial No. 287,465.

has been to erect a post of metal, wood or concrete at the center of the two thoroughfares in order to direct the traiic always to the right, and thus avoid a great deal of the confusion otherwise present at such places. This practice has been the means of numerous serious accidents caused by vehicles colliding with such rigidly mounted post or standard and resulting in injuries to the driver or operator of the vehicle and the occupants thereof, to say nothing of the damage caused to said vehicle and the complete demolition of the post or standard.

To avoid such injury to the persons occupying the vehicle which may accidentally collide withv such a post and the consequent damage to' the vehicle, and to minimize the cost of replacing the post, the present invention has been provided which contemplates the erection at the desired location, of a post constructed of easily breakable parts but constructed and assembled in such a way as to have the appearance of a permanent structure', and to loe capable of withstanding all ordinary strains such as might be imposed upon it by the elements or general use.

To this end, the invention comprises a metallic base l, preferably formed of cast iron and of circular contour, the top platform 2 having integral strengthening ribs 3 :formed on the under side thereof in radial relation to a central, threaded bore or aperture 3a, thel outer extremities of the ribs be ing joined by a circumferential ring Llcast integrally therewith and adapted to rest upon the groundl and support the platform 2 in spaced relation thereto.

Threaded into the aperture Sais a. short length of pipe 5 comprising a socket secured in its threaded engagement with the base 'by a lock nu-rv 6, whereby the said pipe is rigidly held in upright position upon the base and at the center thereof. The upper end of the pipe 5 is beveled as indicated at 7 and is adapted to receive therein a section ot tube 8 formed of wood, snugly fitting the same and supported at the proper elevation within the pipe 5 by a screw or other projection 9 carried by the wall of the latter.

An upper light-sllliporting standard 1U formed of metal tubing of the same diameter as the pipe 5, is adapted to rest upon and be vsupported by the latter, the connection be- Patented June 24, 1919.

standard 10 and projecting below the same a suliicien't distance to receive the upper end of the pipe 5, the inner diameter of the' sleeve or coupling 11 being smooth or free of threads where contacting with the said pipe 5, as indicated at 12 in Fig. 2 of the drawing.

The wooden tube 8 snugly fits the internal diameter of the standard 10 and serves as the main supporting means for the same, the sleeve serving as a shield :tor the Joint between the two tubes to exclude water, etc.,

therefrom. The beveled upper end ot' the y pipe 5 facilitates the introduction of the sleeve 11 overthe same when it becomes necessary to renew the device in case of accident, in a manner to be explained.

The upper end of the standard 10 is adapted to carry any suitable light, an electric lamp globe 12a being illustrated in the drawing, the bores of the several parts described providing` the necessary conduit for the wire connections 13 which may then pass into the conduit 14C connected to the town or city mains.

The structure, as far as described, provides a collapsibleI standard for signaling' or warning lights which, by reason of said light is readily visible at night and in order to render the same equally distinguishable by day, it is deemed advisable to form a sheathing or casing for the same which may be painted some light coloi to attract the eye, and may be further embellished with suitable warning signs, such as Keep to the right, etc. This sheathing is preferably composed of thin pickets or panels 15 of wood or some other cheap' material placed in surrounding relation to tbe standard 10 and inclined toward each other at the top and slightly spaced apart, thus forming a tapering structure held together adjacentto the top and bottom thereofl byv wire stra-nds 1G, 16, suitably twisted about the same in a well known manner, and maintaining the same spaced relation to each other and to the central upright standard structure.

From the foregoing .it will be seen that in the event of the device being accidentally struck by an unruly or misguided vehicle,

the sheathing will readily collapse and the i standard fall by reason of the breaking of the wooden tube 8 where entering the pipe 5, and the only damage done will be the loss of the globe 12 and lamp therein, the sheathing and the wooden tube as stated, but the danger to the occupants of the vehicle and damage to the latter, is reduced to a minimum, and it will be seen that the parts, to-

gether with said sheathing, may be readily replaced at a very slight cost.

l. A collapsible post for signs, lights, etc., .made tubular in form and in sections, and a break-able coupling connecting said sections and including a breakable tube spanning the joint between the sections and. maintaining said sections in proper relation to each other, said tube being adapted to break when unusual strain is olaced thereon.

2. A collapsi le post for signs, lights, etc., made tubular in form and in sections, and a breakable coupling for said sections, said coupling including a collar fast to one sec tion and extending beyond the same and looselyembracing the other section, and an interiorly arranged breakable tube spanning the meeting ends of said sectionsy and extending beyond said ends.

3. A collapsible sign and lighting post comprising a base member, a relatively short upstanding socket member secured centrally to the base member, a tubular standard having lighting means located at its upper end, a collar secured to its lower end and extending below the same and adapted to slip over the upper end of the socket member, a rela tively short easily brealzable tube litted within the lower end of the standard and extending into said socket, and a stop carried by the socket and adapted to support said tube, the latter being adapted to readily break upon receiving a blow.

4. A collapsible post for signs, lights, etc., made tubular in form and in sections and a breakable coupling connecting said sections and including a breakable tube spanning the joint between the sections andmaintaining said sections in proper relation to each other, said tube being adapted to break when unusual strain is placed thereon, and a sheathing surroiuiding the said standard in spaced relation thereto comprising a series ci spaced slats suitably secured together, extending nearly to the upper end of the standard and resting upon the base, said sheathing being adapted to attract attention and to have indicia imprinted thereon.

In testimony that I claim the foregoing as my own, I have hereto afxed my signature in the presence of witnesses.

WILLIAM I-I. BROWN.

Witnesses:

O. A. RILEY, L. E. UDEN, IVAN C. Rinnr.

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